Scarborough man jailed for glassing drinker

by court reporter

A father has been jailed for more than four years after glassing a man in the eye in a Scarborough pub.

Lee Sefton, 35, had been having a laugh and a joke with the young man but blew his top following a bizarre incident in The Waterhouse pub in St Thomas Street.

York Crown Court heard that Sefton had given the victim, who was apparently unknown to him, a £20 note to buy drinks.

The victim got a round in and told a bar stewardess to keep the change, prompting Sefton to fly into a rage.

An argument broke out as the victim apologised and walked towards a gaming machine.

Enraged Sefton grabbed a beer glass, emptied its contents and walked over to the man.

“He smashed (the glass) against the gaming machine and lunged his arm towards the victim,” said Mr Parsons.

The blow with the jagged glass struck the victim just below the eye. He quickly left the pub with blood dripping from his face.

He was taken to hospital in Scarborough with a “jagged cut” and transferred to York where he underwent surgery. He was left scarred by the attack and there was also slight nerve damage. Doctors initially feared his sight could be affected.

Following Sefton’s arrest, Sefton, who had been drinking before the incident, told officers he couldn’t remember holding a glass.

The father-of-two, of Lingholm Crescent, Scarborough, appeared for sentence on Friday after admitting wounding with intent.

The court heard that the incident, part of which was captured on CCTV, happened in the early hours of October 19 2015, when the victim, who was named in court, had been out drinking with a friend.

Mr Parsons said that Sefton and the victim had been having some friendly “banter” in the run-up to the attack and the atmosphere in the pub, which was full of people, was jolly.

“The victim remembers talking to a male with glasses,” added the barrister. “The next thing he remembers is sitting on a bench, bleeding from his head.”

The court heard that Sefton had a record for violence including ABH and affray.

His barrister Taryn Turner said that Sefton was “genuinely” sorry for the attack in The Waterhouse.

“The defendant had paid for some drinks in the bar and the victim was a bit of a drunken nuisance in a way, but (Sefton) tolerated that behaviour,” added Mrs Turner.

She said that on the day of the attack, Sefton had broken up with his wife - the latest in a series of separations during their “fairly toxic” relationship which ultimately ended in divorce. Sefton, whom she described as a “hard-working man”, now had a new partner.

Judge Paul Worsley QC said the evidence pointed to the fact that Sefton smashed the glass before “deliberately pushing it into (the victim’s) face”.

“That could have cost him his eye,” added Mr Worsley. “In fact, he has made a good recovery and the scar is not as bad as it could have been. But anyone who uses a glass (in this way) is using a terrible weapon which can cause appalling injuries.”

The judge told Sefton: “You have, on occasions in the past, lost your temper and assaulted people, therefore you do not come to the court with clean hands.”